Webzones that Kick Ass (2015-02-25)

CD5K > FU > DWB > getlinks

Many links to various sites that I respect and enjoy.

Warning: Some of the links on this page could lead to websites which you might find compelling or addictive. Click with caution.

Contents:


Packed With Amazing

Entertainment

everything2
User-submitted articles, stories, and editorials.
That Quest Site
Full of original interactive fantasies.
Retro Gaming with Racketboy
The greatest games of previous generations.
RGB Classic Games
An archive of games from the PC's long history.
TL;DR Wikipedia
Snappy summaries of everyone's favorite encyclopedia.
Web Pages That Suck
Learn good design by knowing bad design.
Z2 ZZT Archive
Showcasing 1991's hottest game creation engine.
Zophar's Domain
An extensive resource on console emulation.

Information

Ars Technica
The latest in science, tech, and their cultures.
Dan's Web Tips
Things to consider when making websites.
December Communications
A web portal with extensive links and HTML info.
DRM-Free Living
Where to find content that isn't locked down.
DuckDuckGo
A search engine that respects your privacy.
Iron Chariots
A wiki dedicated to counter-apologetics.
TechDirt
Reporting on legal stupidity as it happens.
What's The Harm?
Lists of people hurt or killed due to misinformation.

Classic

Bandwith Conservation Society
A 1995 guide to website optimization.
Beyond the Basics
A charming dive into mid-level HTML 3.2.
JROK Land
The homepage of an arcade cabinet enthusiast.
Metroid II's Secret Worlds
Explorations of curious eight bit glitch areas.
Mike's Free GIFs
A large collection of old animated images.
Ruby Quest
The adventure that put wheels into motion.
Sixteen Colors
A large gallery of ASCII and ANSI art, old and new.
Team TNT
The archives of the creators of Final Doom and Boom.

Recommended

The Daily Motivator
Words of wisdom to change your life by.
Dig
A great story about our place in the universe.
DRM is Toxic to Culture
Why restrictions are misguided and shortsighted.
Gibson Research Corporation
Programs for data recovery and computer security.
Kids Can't Use Computers
Take the time to learn the basics of your devices.
NeoCities
The revival of Web 1.0 and its fun home-made homepages.
Save the Internet
Learn about threats to the open internet's future.
Vegetable-Free Living
Because that junk doesn't even qualify as edible.

Quickies

Blowing into Game Cartridges
Salival bacteria actually corrodes the connecting pins.
Censorship and the Internet
A call to reason from 1997 that still resonates today.
High Voltage SID Collection
A pack of more than 44,000 rockin' Commodore 64 tunes.
If Everyone Knew
A wake-up call from our sad, twisted reality.
The Internet is Shit
"Keep your brain farts to yourself." -maddox
Logical Increments
Recommended computer builds, and what they would cost.
Never Perfect
The only person who needs to be happy with you, is you.
The Shrinking Public Domain
Copyright forgot its purpose and now grows out of control.
Tact Filters
A subtle variation in how nerds and normals communicate.
Terms of Service; Didn't Read
Summaries of things you've already agreed to.

Purchases

Also see Necessary Purchases, my favorite items from online shops, and You Should Play These, which lists my top 32 PC games.

If you're outside the USA, you may need to make use of a parcel forwarding service, such as Free Virtual Mailbox.

Legend: [G]ame downloads; [P]hysical items; [S]ervices.

[P] Amazon.com sells nearly every mass-market thing you could hope to find, new or used. Not sure where to begin? Start at the toppp and work your way down.

[S] Consumer Cellular is a low-cost, no-contract, post-paid cellphone plan provider. It's ideal for those of us who just use our mobiles for calling and texting. You can upgrade or downgrade phones, minutes, and texts/data entirely through their website interface.

[G] Desura is a game store primarily focused on the distribution of quality independent titles. They also manage the Indie Royale, a minimally priced bundle of games with a new offering every 2 weeks.

[S] FastMail is a webmail provider that has been operating since 1999, offering ad-free personal email with a bit of file storage and web hosting for as low as $0.85/month.

[G] GOG.COM (Worldwide!) offers a vast selection of great old and new games, DRM-free and working on modern systems, for low prices. In fact, you can sign up right now to get a 100% discount on twelve select games, including Tyrian 2000 and Ultima IV!

[P] MonoPrice is your new favorite outlet for low-cost, high-quality AV equipment, electronic peripherals, and cables. Paying more than $1.50 per foot of cable is now reserved exclusively for sukkaz.

[S] NearlyFreeSpeech.NET is a webhost that lives up to its name, costing around $12 to $36 per year, with domain registration included. Absolute maximum value for your money with these folks, provided you already know a bit about (or can figure out) how to configure and manage a website.

[P] Nintendo Repair Shop carries cleaning kits, security bits, replacement parts, and other utilities to aid cartridge game enthusiasts in maintaining their old console hardware.

[G] Steam (XP+/OSX/DEB) is the digital game store; an unrivaled library with frequent, deep sales. Don't forget to check The Big List to know which titles are bogged down with extra DRM. Also, check out Enhanced Steam (Cr/Fx/Op), which adds a host of missing features to the storefront.

[P] Vat19.com (Worldwide!) offers an ecclectic inventory of unique items and gummy candies. Head over to their Youtube channel to learn about hundreds of interesting things you didn't know you needed.

Software

Essential free programs for your sorry computer that's lacking them.

Security and Anonymity

Privacy Programs

GNU Privacy Guard
An implementation of OpenPGP that allows you to encrypt and verify your communications.
Private Internet Access ($40/yr)
A VPN provider allows you to surf the Web without anyone taking notes on your habits.
Sandboxie (Windows only)
Keep the programs and data you want, and purge the rest, with a web browser sandbox.
VeraCrypt
A hard drive encryption tool, taking the reins after the fall of TrueCrypt.

Peer-to-Peer Deep Web

The Freenet Project
An anti-censorship distributed data publishing system with freesites and forums.
The Invisible Internet Project
An anonymous network router with eepsites, IRC, email, and many more things on the way.
The Tor Project
A relatively well-known proxy routing network with its own hidden sites and services.
PrivacyTools.io
If these aren't enough for you, or you have different needs, here's a huge list of more.

* * * PLEASE REMEMBER * * *
Because something can be used for evil, doesn't mean it always will be. Don't let fear blind you to the legitimate uses of these programs; any German will tell you that no one has "nothing to hide".

Source Ports/Emulators

Because original hardware is always preferable, yet seldom practical.

Chocolate is a modern port of id Tech 1 aiming to retain compatibility with the DOS releases of Doom, Hexen, Strife, and other such games. More advanced engines are also available, such as the highly compatible PRBoom+ and the popular Zandronum.

DOSbox is an MS-DOS emulator which runs all the old games and programs from 1981~1996 that are now incompatible with our futuristic space technology. It can handily simulate a variety of hardware, up to and including Pentium CPUs, SVGA graphics, and the Gravis UltraSound. Also, to preserve your CD-ROM games, create CUE/BIN image pairs with ImgBurn (Windows only).

LibRetro, with its Core system, is a convenient way to play a bunch of consoles and arcade platforms with enhancements. Currently available systems include Atari VCS, most Nintendo systems, Sega 8 and 16-bit, the PlayStation 1, and others.

SCUMMVM emulates the engine used in a myriad of point-and-click adventure games, including many created by LucasArts, Sierra, and Humongous.

VICE recreates six Commodore 8-bit computers, including the VIC-20, 64, and 128. For people who only need C64 emulation, the excellent shareware CCS64 (Windows only) with its immersive menu system is also available.

VirtualBox allows for the emulation of entire computer operating systems, such as Windows XP+, varieties of Linux, BSD, OS/2, and DOS. However, hardware accelerated 3D has not yet been fully developed.

NonMESS compares other emulators for consoles, handhelds, and 8-bit computers to the Multi-Emulator Super System.

Top Ten Webcomics

Of the million-and-one stories being told online, I enjoy these the most:

Banished! (Chaptered)
The misadventures and journey of an alien convict and his spirited robot companion in the midst of straining intergalactic tensions.
Curvy (18+) (Continuous)
A tale of dimension-hopping magic wielders and multiversal politics.
Daisy Owl (Discontinued)
The perfectly ordinary life of Daisy, whose dad is an owl.
Gene Catlow (Continuous)
A chronicle of the physical and spiritual affairs and conflicts between human and anthro, stretching through the past, present, and future.
Nedroid (Low Continuity)
A picture diary featuring the zany antics of Reginald the Great and Handsome, his friend Beartato, and sometimes Harrison.
Rice Boy (Completed)
I have no words that would do it justice. Just strap in, and read.
Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal (No Continuity)
Your daily dose of plot twist as the result of science, religion, philosophy, and the nature of humans (and aliens!)
The System (Low Continuity)
A comic about the workplace, cycling, coffee, and life in general, exclusively rendered with International Symbol Signs.
TwoKinds (Chaptered)
Join an amnesiac warlock, an escaped slave, an exiled warrior, and other companions as they roam the lands in search of a better world.
Unicorn Jelly (Completed)
A multi-generational philosophical science fiction epic set in a fully realized and developed universe. This flipped switches in my brain until the Ultraverse was in development.
Honorable Mention: Homestuck (Completed)

World Conspiracy Hypotheses

Some interesting alternative interpretations of reality - which, as far as I'm concerned, is really what we make of it. Even the words we use to describe stuff have arbitrary, self-defined meanings. (OR DO THEY?)

Truthism
The place to go for Reptilian Space Illuminati lore.
Xee-A Twelve
A collection of fascinating stories.
Montalk
An extensive resource for Fringe Knowledge and the Matrix.
MetaTech
A news portal spilling information supressed by the man.
Thrive Movement
A feature film on how to fix all of the world's problems. It also tumbles through literally every CH I have ever heard of except reptilian aliens controlling politics, religion, commerce, and/or the media...
Impossiblator Part II
...which is because that role is actually filled by a secret cabal of omnipotent Commodore computer techno-sorcerers, who can do more with 4K than you can with eight megs.
Harmonic 4-Day Time Cube
Do you have any idea how dumb you are, and how inaccurate your concept of the passage of time is? Follow Dr. Gene Ray, the Wisest Human, on a long-ass journey through the reasons you are a terrible person and he isn't.
The Deoxyribonucleic Hyperdimension
A consciousness-expanding archive established in 1993 that's rife with commentary on science, spirituality, philosophy, and the human condition.
Dihydrogen Monoxide Research Division
With the aid of this information resource, you can assist us in spreading the word about the highly dangerous solvent also known as hydric acid.
Aluminum Foil
Everyone's favorite lyrical chef, Weird Al, now reveals the truth that the Food Broadcasting Industry doesn't want you to know!

UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Unless stated otherwise, this work is available under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright 2016 Bytemoth - CC BY-SA 4.0 - http://fu.cd5k.net/dwb/

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